The ETO Rangers and ThunderCats goes to FernGully: The Last Rainforest
FernGully: The Last Rainforest (also known by its alternate overseas title as FernGully: The Adventures of Zak and Crysta) is a 1992 Australian-American animated musical fantasy film, directed by Bill Kroyer. It was produced by Peter Faiman and Wayne Young, with the screenplay written by Jim Cox, adapted from a book of the same name written 15 years prior by Diana Young. Alan Silvestri composed the film's score. The film features the voices of Jonathan Ward, Samantha Mathis, Tim Curry, Christian Slater and Robin Williams. FernGully is set in an Australian rainforest inhabited by fairies including Crysta, who accidentally shrinks a young logger named Zak to the size of a fairy. Together they rally the fairies and the animals of the rainforest to protect their home from the loggers and a malevolent pollution entity, Hexxus. The film was released to mainly positive reviews, and was also generally considered a moderate financial success at both the box office and in home video sales. In 1997, it was followed by a direct-to-video sequel FernGully 2: The Magical Rescue, though none of the original voice cast reprised their roles. FernGully was the first official episode of the ETO Rangers and ThunderCats' Adventures crossover series by Garfiled1990, featuring the characters from the Shaft anime series Twelve Warrior Explosive ETO Rangers, and the Rankin/Bass series, ThunderCats. It was entitled The ETO Rangers and ThunderCats goes to FernGully: The Last Rainforest. In Japan, the crossover series and its first overall episode were known by its counterpart adaptation as ETO Rangers and ThunderCats: The Fairies of the Wonder Forest ''(エトレンジャーとサンダーキャッツ: 不思議の森の妖精たち, ''Etorenjā to Sandā Kyattsu: Fushigi no Mori no Yōsei-Tachi). It was shown on YouTube in the spring of 2013, after Agumon's Adventures of Yu-Gi-Oh! The Movie. Summary After the events of the series' pilot which involve them establishing their associating base on the Digital World (also known as Planet Digimon), the two alien races: the ETO Rangers and the ThunderCats led by Bakumura and Lion-O travels to Earth and enters an magical Australian rainforest called FernGully where they must help a young Crysta, her friend Pip, a young Earthling Zak, a crazy fruit bat named Batty Koda and the entire fairy race save their world from the evil Hexxus who was unknowingly freed from his imprisonment by some "thought-to-be-extincted" humans cutting down trees with one logging machine. But they also must deal with their own enemies, Nyanma, Mumm-Ra and the rest of the Evil-Spirited Monsters and Mutants of Plun-Darr will help Hexxus exterminate all of FernGully as part of their plot to conquer the universe. With more than enough magic, can these heroes risk everything to defend the forest and briefly the rest of the entire Earth against their foes before it's too late? Plot Crysta is a fairy with a curious nature living in FernGully, a pristine rainforest free from human intervention. The fairies of FernGully once lived in harmony with humans, but, believe them to have gone extinct after being driven away by a malevolent spirit named Hexxus. Crysta is the apprentice of Magi, a motherly-figure fairy who imprisoned Hexxus in a tree. One day, Crysta explores a new part of the forest and meets Batty, a bat who claims to have been experimented on by humans, giving him an unstable personality. She refuses to believe him until she encounters lumberjacks cutting down trees. She sees Zak, a young human whom Crysta accidentally shrinks when she tries to save him from being crushed by a falling tree, though does not know how to restore him to normal size. Meanwhile, the tree that Hexxus is imprisoned in is unknowingly and accidentally cut down by Tony and Ralph, Zak's superiors, freeing him in the form of an oil monster. The vengeful Hexxus quickly begins to regain his powers by feeding on pollution and smoke, restoring his previous form. Before finishing his transformation, he manipulates the humans to drive to FernGully. In FernGully, Zak meets Pips, a fairy male who is envious of Zak's relationship with Crysta. Zak begins to fall in love with Crysta, but hides the true reason that the humans had returned. When the signs of Hexxus's resurrection begin to manifest themselves in poisoned trees and rivers, he finally admits that humans are destroying the forest. The fairies mount an attempt to defend their homes, but knowing their fight is hopeless, Zak convinces Batty to aid him in stopping the machine before it destroys them. When Zak makes his presence known to Tony and Ralph, Hexxus takes over the machine and begins to wildly destroy the forest. Magi sacrifices herself to give the fairies a chance, and she tells Crysta to remember everything she's learned. Zak manages to stop the machine, depriving Hexxus the source of his power, but he manifests within the oil in the machine and begins to ignite the forest ablaze. Crysta seemingly sacrifices herself by allowing herself to be devoured by Hexxus and all seems lost, until he begins to sprout limbs and leaves like a tree. Pips and the rest of the fairies rally to the powers they have been given, which causes the seed that Crysta fed him to start growing wildly. Hexxus is crushed and erased by the newly grown tree at the very border of FernGully which bursts into bloom. Crysta appears after the fight, having survived her ordeal and successfully succeeded Magi as a magical fairy. She gives Zak a seed, begging him to remember everything that has transpired and she sadly restores him to his human size. Remembering the seed in his hand, Zak promises to remember his adventure, and buries the seed in the soil before telling Tony and Ralph that things need to change as they leave the forest behind. The seed sprouts new growth for FernGully, as Crysta follows Pips with Batty behind her. Hero Teams/Mugen Gang ETO Rangers * Bakumaru (Rat): The Leader. Originally had fear of cats but eventually overcame it with the help of Gaō. Has a Jedi-Like Saber which he uses to kill the enemy (received on Momotaro's world in Episode 2) and the Genmakyou mirror to summon a teammate which is not involved in a mission or to reveal a hidden monster. In one mission where he was not included, He gave his mirror to Souffle in case they need to summon him. Has hidden affections for Cream. Voices: Chika Sakamoto (Japanese), Stephanie Nadolny (English). * Hols (Ox): Can turn into a fierce bull at will when he sees anything red or of a red hue. This is derived from the red capes that matadors use at bullfights. Voices: Toshiyuki Morikawa (Japanese), Kyle Hebert (English). * Gao (Tiger): Has a special pair of shades which he uses to turn himself into a giant tiger by putting them on and shouting "Tora Tora Hai!" which means tiger tiger equip but that sounded awkward so creative licensing was exercised to make it "Tiger Tiger Transformation". He also helped Bakumaru overcome his fear of cats. Voices: Mitsuaki Hoshino (Japanese), Christopher Sabat (English). * Cream (Rabbit): Has a magical carrot-shaped wand that can change hers or her teammate's costumes. One noticeable costume is a bunny-girl uniform. Has a crush on Bakumaru. Being a rabbit, she has good hearing, and can even hear if her teammates are in trouble from far away. Voices: Kyōko Hikami (Japanese), Anna Garduno (English). * Drago (Dragon): Has a white cloud for personal transportation which he can expand for others to travel on as well and can turn into a giant dragon by counting to three in Mandarin and activating his special crystal ball somewhat like a ninja smoke bomb. He is also very intelligent, can command weather in normal or giant dragon form and while a giant dragon he can use his wings to conjure hurricanes and has various breath powers like fire and a purple breath similar to Spyro's convexity breath. He is one of the most powerful among the twelve. Voice: Jin Yamanoi (Japanese), Bob Glouberman (English). * Nyorori (Snake): Has telekinetic capabilities that basically function for the existence of invisible arms, 2 white gloves that serve as his hands and that he can levitate a bit above the ground rather than slither. He is persistent, wise and quite cunning. Voices: Rokurō Naya (Japanese), Lex Lang (English). * Pakaracchi (Horse): Enthusiastic most of the time and often makes comments on youth should or should not be. Armed with a Horse Shoe Boomerang. Voices: Takashi Nagasako (Japanese), Dave Mallow (English). * Souffle (Sheep): Has a magical compact that can automatically detect any metallic materials in the area. In one mission where Bakumaru was not included, Bakumaru gave his mirror to her in case they need him. In another mission (that is based on Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid), she devoted the story and decided not to let the little mermaid (as a human) being dissolved into a sea foam and protect her from harm in anyway, although is hard for her to accept the sad ending of the story. Despite a love interest she developed in the third episode, it can be estimated that she has a secret love crush on Monk. Voices: Yūko Miyamura (Japanese), Brina Palencia (English). * Monk (Monkey): Fun loving and silly. He's good at imitating voices, climbing around and scratching his enemies. He and Pochiro seldom get along and he lacks any swimming abilities. He owns the Monkey See Monkey Do Voice Recorder. Voices: '''Yoshiko Kamei (Japanese), Brianne Siddall (English). * Tart (Rooster): Has a chicklet timer that in one episode turned her from her chicken form to a more human form. A parallel to the "beautiful swan transformation" story. She has since then stayed that way due to the fact she thought some of the boys were making fun of her form. However certain things like Bakumaru flashing his mirror and Pochiro kicking a soccer ball into her face, have been to temporarily reverted her humanoid face back into her beaked face. '''Voice: Maria Kawamura (Japanese), Edie Mirman (English). * Pochiro (Dog): Values honor and is a bit hot-headed at times, this is one thing that causes fights between him and Monk. Armed with a bone-shaped stick which can stretch. Voices: Toshiyuki Morikawa (Japanese), Sonny Strait (English) * Urii (Pig): His power bursts whenever he cries. Voices: Yoko Soumi (Japanese), Brad Jackson (English). Mentors and Supporters * Princess Aura (オーラ姫 Oora-hime?) the protective ruler of Mugen. She serves the Great God Goal, and speaks for him. She is the mentor of the Eto Rangers. She can send out powerful beams of energy or diffuse light. Nyanma seems to have known her, and has something personally against her. Aura shows sadness toward her, even sympathy, which only infuriates Nyanma. (human) Voices: Maria Kawamura (Japanese), Meredith McCoy (English) * Kirinda (キリンダー Kirinda?) (Ki-Rin mecha) Voices: Rokurō Naya (Japanese), Christopher Sabat (English). * Lydia (リディア Lideia?) (reporter, human) Voices: Rokurō Naya (Japanese), Eric Vale (English). * Chocolat (ショコラ Shokora?) The Spirit of Cats whose alter ego is the Jarei Queen, Nyanma, She's also an old friend of Gaō (cat) Voices: Yoko Soumi (Japanese), Wendee Lee (English). * Great God Goal (大霊神ゴール Dairei Shin Gooru?) (Oversoul of Mugen) Voices: Tamio Oki (Japanese), Dave Mallow (English). ThunderCats * Villain Teams/Jarei Monster Club Evil-Spirited Monsters * Nyanma (ニャンマー Nyanmaa?) The dark cat mistress who's the queen of Jarei monsters, she also used to be Chocolat, the Spirit of Cats, who was excluded from the choice of 12 protectors by being disqualified from the race, so she became Nyanma and seeks revenge by using Jarei monsters to destroy the Novel Worlds, She seems to know Aura, and wants vengeance for a past offense. (cat) Voices: Yoko Soumi (Japanese), Melodee Spevack (English). * Gousen (ゴウセン Gōsen?) (White cat) Voices: Mitsuaki Hoshino, Dameon Clarke (English). * Gen (ゲンエン Gen'en?) (Black cat) Voices: Yoshiko Kamei (Japanese), Linda Young (English). * Rouran (ロウラン Rōran?) (Blue cat) Voices: Takashi Nagasako (Japanese), Doug Erholtz (English). * Juken (珠献 Jyuken?) (Red cat) Voices: Kyōko Hikami (Japanese), Mari Devon (English). * Jarei God Bagi (邪霊神バギ Jarei Shin Bagi?) (Evil God Bagi cat) Voices: Ikuko Tani (Japanese), Christopher Sabat (English). Mumm-Ra * Main Characters Music and Songs Twelve Warrior Explosive ETO Rangers # Not Yet Yet (Opening Theme) # I Want to See You (1st Closing Theme) Insert Songs # Ghost Queen Nyanma ThunderCats # ThunderCats (opening/closing theme) FernGully: The Last Rainforest # Life is a Magic Thing - Johnny Clegg, Chorus # Batty Rap - Batty Koda (Robin Williams) # If I'm Gonna Eat Somebody - Goanna (Tone Loc) # Toxic Love - Hexxus (Tim Curry) # It's Raining Like Magic - Raffi, Chorus # Land of a Thousand Dances - Guy, Chorus # A Dream Worth Keeping - Sheena Easton # Some Other World (end credits) - Elton John, Chorus Cast English Cast * Stephanie Nadolny as Bakumura * Kyle Hebert as Hols * Christopher Sabat as Hols, Kirinda, Dark Kirinda and Jaeri God Bagi ** Shane Ray as Kirinda and Dark Kirinda (additional roars) * Anna Garduno as Cream * Bob Glouberman as Drago * Lex Lang as Nyorori * Dave Mallow as Pakaracchi and Great God Goal * Brina Palencia as Souffle * Brianne Siddall as Monk * Edie Mirman as Tart * Sonny Strait as Pochiro * Brad Jackson as Urii * Meredith McCoy as Princess Aura * Eric Vale as Lydia * Wendee Lee as Chocolat * Melodee Spevack as Nyanma * Dameon Clarke as Gousen * Linda Young as Gen * Doug Erholtz as Roran * Mari Devon as Juken * Earl Hammond as Jaga and Mumm-Ra * Larry Kenney as Lion-O and Jackalman * Peter Newman as Tygra, Wilykat and Monkian * Earle Hyman as Panthro * Lynne Lipton as Cheetara and Wilykit * Bob McFadden as Snarf and Slythe * Samantha Mathis as Crysta * Jonathan Ward as Zak * Tim Curry as Hexxus * Christian Slater as Pips * Robin Williams as Batty Koda * Grace Zabriskie as Magi Lune * Geoffrey Blake as Ralph * Robert Pastorelli as Tony * Cheech Marin as Stump * Tommy Chong as Root * Tone Lōc as Goanna * Townsend Coleman as Knotty * Danny Mann as Ash * Kathleen Freeman as Elder #1 Additional Voices Japanese Cast * Chika Sakamoto as Bakumaru * Toshiyuki Morikawa as Hols and Pochiro * Mitsuaki Hoshino as Gao and Gousen * Kyoko Hikami as Cream and Juken * Jin Yamanoi as Drago * Rokuro Naya as Nyorori, Kirinda and Lydia * Takashi Nagasako as Pakaracchi and Rouran * Yuko Miyamura as Souffle * Yoshiko Kamei as Monk and Genen * Maria Kawamura as Tart and Princess Aura * Yoko Surami as Urii and Nyanma/Chocolat * Masaaki Tsukada as Jaga * Takahiro Sakurai as Lion-O * Nobutoshi Canna as Tygra * Junko Noda as WilyKat * Mika Kanai as WilyKit * Ryoko Nagata as Cheetara * Satomi Kohrogi as Snarf * Norio Wakamoto as Mumm-Ra * Nobuyuki Hiyama as Slythe * Yusuke Numata as Jackalman * Narushi Ikeda as Monkian * Tessho Genda as Panthro * Megumi Hayashibara as Crysta * Masami Kikuchi as Pips * Ryusei Nakao as Batty Koda * Yasunori Matsumoto as Zak * Reiko Seno as Magi Lune * Kenji Utsumi as Hexxus Additional Voices * Naoki Tatsuta * Daisuke Gori * Kenichi Ogata * Hideyuki Umezu * Yuu Shimaka * Hirohiko Kakegawa * Bin Shimada * Masahiro Anzai * Hiroko Takemasa * Junko Sakuma Credits Production notes Producer Wayne Young said his passion for the environment was his motivation for making the film, saying the film was "blatantly environmental, although we have gone to a lot of trouble to avoid preaching. We also want it to be viewed as entertainment." The inspiration for FernGully came from stories written by his former wife, Diana Young. Diana first wrote the story of FernGully 15 years prior to the film's release. Wayne said the couple planned a film adaptation for five years, then spent "seven years of dreaming and hustling, followed by another three years of production". Wayne stated their dream was not possible until the success of Walt Disney Feature Animation's 1989 film The Little Mermaid, which brought popularity back to animation.1 Hand drawn scenes in the film were complimented by computer animation, which was used to create elements such as flocks of birds that would have taken much longer to animate traditionally. Kroyer states 40,000 frames of computer animation were used in the film, and that the use of such animation halved the production time. Most of the film's $24 million budget was spent on the animation and the soundtrack. The film marked Robin Williams' first animation role, with the character Batty Koda being created specifically for him. Williams provided 14 hours worth of improvised lines for the part which was originally only supposed to be an 8-minute role. Director Bill Kroyer was so impressed with the voice work he ended up tripling the screen time given to the character. Williams went on to provide the critically applauded voice of the Genie in Disney's Aladdin later the same year. Williams accepted the role in FernGully because he agreed with the film's message, as did the rest of the voice cast, who all worked for scale wages. The film marked the first time that both members of Cheech & Chong had worked together in six years, with the two voicing beetle brothers Stump and Root. Cheech Marin said "It was just like old times, but we only worked for two or three hours, had a pizza and split." Trivia * The English dub voices for the characters of Twelve Warrior Explosive ETO Rangers was provided by the American cast members of Funimation Entertainment and Saban Entertainment, using archive recordings of their voices for their many other dubbed anime roles such as the Yu-Gi-Oh!, Dragon Ball, Narato, One Piece and Digimon franchises. For example, Stephanie Nadolny is the voice of Bakumura (in his Kid Goku/Gohan accent), Christopher Sabat: Gao (in his Yamcha/Zolo accent), and Anna Garduno: Cream (in her Palmon accent). Real world references * Miscellaneous trivia * Errors * Ownership Rights *''ETO Rangers'' (full name in Japan: Twelve Warrior Explosive ETO Rangers) belongs to Shaft. *''ThunderCats'' belongs to Rankin/Bass. *''FernGully'' belongs to 20th Century Fox. Transcripts English The ETO Rangers and ThunderCats goes to FernGully: The Last Rainforest/Transcript Japanese ETO Rangers and ThunderCats: The Fairies of the Wonder Forest/Transcript Category:Garfiled1990 Category:The ETO Rangers and ThunderCats' Adventures Category:The ETO Rangers Category:ThunderCats Category:Funimation Entertainment Category:Saban Characters Category:Rankin/Bass Category:20th Century Fox Movies Category:English-Dubbed films Category:Japanese TV/Movie Crossovers